5.0 - Light Of The Stygian Orb

by Krista Walsh

  Zach shrugged, only realizing after a moment that she wouldn’t see the gesture. He poured out the coffee and touched her hand to pass her the mug. She wrapped her palms around it and released a sigh of contentment as her shivers subsided.

  “Our shift here happened thousands of years ago,” he said. “Wars, division, a desire for adventure — our reasons for spreading out are the same as the ones you humans give for trying to claim more land for yourselves. The only difference is that we otherworldly have the ability to jump through dimensions to see it done.”

  “Then why aren’t we overrun with angels and demons and whatever else is out there?”

  “There are treaties in place that limit otherworldly numbers and make sure that one species never overtakes the others. Besides, it’s a big universe. If one area starts to get crowded, someone finds a way to break into somewhere new.”

  Molly tasted her coffee, grimaced, then sipped it again. For a few moments, they sat in silence. Dusty came over and stretched out between them, her head on Zach’s shoe and her hindquarters spread across Molly’s. She rubbed herself against the floor, stirring more dirt into the air.

  “How many different species of…otherworldly…are there on Earth?” Molly asked after a while.

  “More than I could ever count.”

  “And you all live here peacefully?”

  “Hardly. Most of us are territorial, and even enjoy solitude from our own kind. It’s not often you’ll see a bunch of us hanging out together. Especially not of different breeds. There are a few gangs” — he thought of Karl, then pushed the memory of his sniveling face aside — “but they keep their heads down. It’s a universal agreement that the dominant species we base our appearance on should never know our secrets. On Earth, we’d be taken in for tests, studied and caged like rats. The humans would panic. There would be a call for our extermination. So we work to stay out of the light.”

  Molly tapped her fingers against the mug, then ran her thumb along a crack down the side of it.

  “And that agreement works? It’s just, if there’s as many of you as you claim, there would have to be occasional times where you rose up against the status quo, right? History books are full of uprisings after people get tired of the way things are.”

  Zach swallowed another grunt and scratched under Dusty’s chin. He didn’t want to talk about the troubles the otherworld had faced. Not to a human girl who could never understand and who had no idea how large the world was that she was trying to step into. She didn’t need nightmares about what might be lurking in the dark.

  He considered telling her about Karl — how there were some demons that obviously weren’t happy with the way things were if they were hoping to recruit others to help change them — but he really didn’t want to waste any more thought power on them than he already had tonight.

  So he dug through his memory to find something else to share that would satisfy the question.

  “Over a hundred years ago, we had a war. If you looked it up in your human histories, it might have been documented as a slew of civil rights riots, but that was only what they wanted people to see. The real war was fought on a different plane. A battlefield of blood and fire. Back then, there was a species called the guardians, and they served as a sort of otherworldly military. They watched over the world, cutting down any group that tested the treaties. Eventually, some of the demons decided they’d had enough. They brought in support from other dimensions and fought to wipe the guardians out. It was a long battle, bloody, and more species were exterminated than the one they intended. In the end, the demons were defeated. Barely.”

  “That’s horrible,” Molly said, sorrow creating creases around her eyes. “What happened after the guardians were gone? Did the demons try to take over?”

  “Our side expected them to,” Zach said. “I remember my mother telling me about how both sides were braced to keep fighting until one group or the other was destroyed. They were dark days. No one knew who to trust, and just the act of walking down the wrong street could be seen as a challenge for another skirmish right there in front of the mundane public.”

  “Then what?”

  Molly’s entire body had tensed, and her coffee appeared to be forgotten in her hands.

  “Who knows. The order must have come from somewhere for the demons to stand down. The guardians were gone, bad blood existed all around, but the fighting just stopped. From there, both sides had to rebuild and find a new status quo, which was never as stable as it had been when there was a governing presence standing over us.”

  “And there haven’t been any other wars since then?”

  “Not to that scale, no.”

  Even as Zach said the words, he wondered if they were true. He thought about Jermaine’s attempt to enslave him. For what purpose? Just to have someone do his bidding while he tortured more supernaturals for the fun of it? Or was it for something else?

  And then there were the ghouls in the street. It was strange enough for them to come to the surface when normally they preferred to stay underground, but to attack a human… Why? They didn’t eat human flesh, and they were usually too cowardly to pick a fight.

  It was as though they’d been stirred into a frenzy.

  He’d noticed the change in the city’s energy over the last couple of months, but he’d stopped paying attention after Karl’s visit, being too focused on keeping out of sight. With Molly pestering him with her questions, he was forced to reconsider whether some storm wasn’t brewing above New Haven.

  As if he needed another reason to get the girl out of his life and run like hell while he still could.

  “I’ve answered enough of your questions,” he said. “Finish your coffee and I’m taking you home.”

  Molly didn’t argue with him, and he released a breath as he realized that he’d finally won the upper hand. Let her sit with the information she’d gained. If it wasn’t enough to make her want to step back from his world, then maybe she was nothing more than a stupid human after all.

  5

  Molly woke up the next morning in a cold sweat, her mind still reeling from her dreams. The smell of the parking lot — with its hints of oil and stale gasoline, the rotting sweetness of the ghouls — and the sliminess of the monsters’ thin, greasy touch had haunted her. She’d thought she was about to suffocate under their grasp when consciousness had finally pulled her to safety.

  She’d managed to sneak back into the house around three in the morning. Zach had offered to give her a boost into the tree, and then had fallen silent when she’d found a branch low to the ground that she hadn’t realized was there before.

  He’d given one of his indecipherable grunts, but failed to explain what had shocked him into speechlessness as she’d shinnied the rest of the way up and back through the window. Although exhaustion had weighed her down, she’d taken the time to unstring her bow and put her arrows away, hoping her dad wouldn’t notice that one was missing.

  Her mind had still been spinning with everything she’d learned, and she’d been certain it would take forever to fall asleep, but she’d passed out as soon as her head hit the pillow.

  Now her alarm was vibrating beneath the layers of cotton and microfiber stuffing, forcing her to face a new day, even though all she wanted to do was burrow under her blankets and keep sleeping for a few more hours. She reached her arm out from under the blankets and smacked her hand down on the snooze button, putting a stop to the vibration of the cushion resting under her pillow.

  How could she face her old world now that she’d barged into a new one? She’d had suspicions before, but now she knew that at any point during her day, she could bump into a demon and not even know it.

  Part of her was terrified by the possibility, but stronger than her fear was an enthusiasm that buzzed through her for experiencing the world with a fresh perspective. Although she would have preferred to learn that the otherworld was tucked into such a small corner that it would require an effort to searc
h for it, she was excited to know that she could search for it. The extraordinary was everywhere.

  As though the revelation had set loose something that had been caged inside her, she suddenly looked forward to exploring her new purpose, staying open for clues that might give someone from the otherworld away. Were any students in her class something other than what they seemed? Now she would know to pay attention for it.

  The idea was enough to make her throw back her blankets to start getting ready for her day, an act she immediately regretted as the cold morning air flowed through the cotton of her thin pajamas. She’d forgotten to close the window before she fell into bed, and the morning chill froze her toes as she slipped her socks on.

  Her mother had already carried out her part of their morning routine, setting Molly’s clothes for the day on the chair beside the door. Molly ran her fingers over the shirt resting on top of the pile, recognizing her usual T-shirt and favorite overshirt, the soft one her mother told her was blue and white with silver embroidery trailing along the arms. Her jeans from last night were stiff with blood and who knew what else, so she threw them in the wash, hoping her mom didn’t ask about the stains, and grabbed a clean pair.

  After she got dressed, she took down her messy ponytail from the night before and passed her brush through the tangled locks a couple of times, cursing as her curls caught in the bristles. She considered having her mother brush it out so she didn’t terrify the other students with her bird’s nest, but when her fingers brushed over something crusty near her scalp, she accepted that a quick bun would have to do until she washed out the ghoul corpse, crossing her fingers that it wasn’t too noticeable. At least the smell was gone now that it was dry.

  After heading to the bathroom to carry out her morning hygiene, spending a bit of extra time on her hands and face to make sure no monster ooze remained, she grabbed her cane and backpack and headed downstairs to the kitchen.

  “Morning, honey,” her mom said. “Your cereal is on the table.”

  Molly slid into her chair and felt for her spoon.

  “Are you feeling okay, Molly?” her dad asked. His newspaper crinkled as he folded it.

  “Fine,” she said.

  “Did you have a rough night?” her mom pushed.

  Molly hid her lie behind a bite of Corn Pops. “Sure. A few weird dreams, but that’s all. Why?”

  “You look like you didn’t sleep a wink. Do you have a fever?” Her mother’s cool hand brushed her arm to let her know she was there and then pressed against Molly’s brow. Molly hoped she wouldn’t touch the goo.

  “Of course not. I feel fine,” she said. “I guess I’m just stressed about midterms.”

  And maybe the fact that my mother could bump into a demon at the grocery store and become his dinner, even as she’s trying to prepare ours.

  She slurped another bite of cereal.

  “All right…but maybe you should take it easy tonight. We’ll cancel having the Tierneys over until next week.”

  “No, don’t do that. You’ve been looking forward to seeing them. Really, I’m fine. I am running late, though.”

  Molly hated hiding things from her parents. Her tongue was straining to tell them all about last night’s adventure, but she knew that if she did, she wouldn’t feel the fresh air on her face again until she was thirty. It was better to get out of the house now before they questioned her past the point of restraint.

  “Late? Honey, you’re an hour early. Did your watch stop?”

  Pretending to check, Molly confirmed that her mother was right. Crap. “No, I just told Steve we could meet before class today. He wants to go over some of the math homework with me.”

  “I’m about to leave for work,” her dad said. “Want a lift?”

  “No, I’m all right. A bit of exercise will get my brain nice and stimulated for morning English class.”

  Molly felt the stretch of her smile as she faced her parents. She prayed they couldn’t tell she was lying, but sensed that her mother, at least, knew something was up.

  “Don’t forget your lunch, then,” her mom said. The fridge door opened, and the coolness of the cloth lunch bag reached out to brush against the back of Molly’s hand when her mother set it on the table.

  “I’ll pick you up after school,” said her dad. “Your equipment is all ready to go?”

  “Everything should be in the case,” Molly said. She crossed her fingers that she hadn’t forgotten to put anything away before she’d gone to bed.

  She brought her bowl to the sink, rinsed it out, and put it in the dishwasher. Then she kissed her mom’s cheek followed by her dad’s, threw her backpack over her shoulders, and set out into the cool morning air.

  As soon as she was away from the pressures of family chitchat, Molly realized how much she didn’t want to be on her own. She needed to talk about what she’d learned, to hear someone else’s thoughts and bounce her ideas off them.

  Since there was only one person in the world she trusted with that kind of information, she slid her hand into her pocket and brought Steve’s number up on her speed dial.

  The Bluetooth connection through her cochlears picked up the call, and after a few rings, he answered, his voice little more than a mumble. “Hello?”

  “Wake up. Something happened last night, and I need to talk to you about it fifteen minutes ago.”

  “I was asleep fifteen minutes ago,” he mumbled. “Why am I awake now?”

  “Steve, come on, I’m serious.”

  “So am I,” he said, sounding slightly more alert. “You know I’m no good until my second alarm.”

  “I went out last night after we said goodnight and was attacked by ghouls in a parking lot.”

  “Where are you?” Any remaining note of sleepiness had vanished.

  “I’ll be at school in fifteen minutes. Meet me at the picnic tables?”

  “I’ll be there in twenty.” He hung up.

  Molly let go of her phone, her nerves vibrating with anticipation. She was certain she’d have to sit through one of Steve’s lectures about being rash, but at least he didn’t have the power to ground her until her hair turned gray.

  This early in the morning, she didn’t share the streets with too many people. A few joggers passed by, skirting her by going into the grass. The traffic began to pick up as she got closer to the road that led to the highway, but it was still pretty empty. It was nice to have some quiet time alone to figure out how much she was going to share with Steve.

  She’d already decided she wouldn’t tell him about Zach. As much as it would bother her to keep something so huge from him, she felt she owed it to the daemelus to keep his secret. Sure, he hadn’t wanted her to come back to his apartment — if she could call it that; she was still sneezing from all the dust in his cramped, stifled basement room — but he’d done her a favor. Not to mention saved her life.

  She had to admit, a small seed of disappointment had sprouted in her heart at the idea that he no longer had a reason to be there for her. Although he’d never made contact in all the months he’d watched over her, it had been kind of cool knowing he was around to make sure she was all right. All her life, she’d had people looking out for her, but they were just making sure she didn’t trip or burn herself or step into traffic. Zach had been guarding her against being torn apart by demons. It made her feel special.

  Now their connection had been severed. He would fade into the shadows, and she would be left to go into the world on her own, armed with the limited knowledge she now possessed. As awesome as it was, it was also a little scary.

  But that was why she would tell Steve the other part of it. If he knew as much as she did, then they could keep watch together. It would give them another secret to share against the world. One that no one would ever guess or believe if they found out.

  One that would tie them closer together.

  A flutter ignited in Molly’s stomach as she reached the picnic table. She folded her cane once she sat down, tilting h
er head back to catch the soft wind as it passed.

  She sat on her own for a few minutes, then jumped when a hand rested on her shoulder. In the chaos of her thoughts, she hadn’t sensed any movement coming up from behind her.

  By the familiar weight of his hand, she recognized Steve. His palm was warm through her jacket, and if the polyester layer weren’t in the way, she knew she would feel the roughness of his fingertips, calloused from his guitar practice. As soon as her heart settled back in place, she opened her mind to try to scan him over with the new awareness she’d discovered last night. His height and width, the pace of his movement as he walked around her, were the same as they’d always been, but today there seemed to be new edges to the space around him, as though he stood out more clearly in her mind than he ever had.

  When they’d first met, she’d asked him to describe what he looked like, and since then, she’d kept up to date on any changes he made to his hair or even, if she could find out without sounding obsessive, what he was wearing. She liked having a picture of him in her mind. From what he’d told her, he was a few inches shy of six feet tall, although she suspected he’d grown a bit more in the last three years. He stood on the heftier side, which she could confirm by the fleshiness of his arm when he helped her navigate any new classroom. He had blond hair and blue eyes, and apparently was so pale that he usually appeared more pink than white, as the smallest amount of sun would burn him.

  Although she didn’t have any real concept of what blond and blue were, she’d spent her life making up equivalents in her mind, attaching concepts or emotions to the colors around her. For all she knew from his description, he could look like a clown, but in her mind, he was the cutest guy in the world.

  His reaction to her news did nothing to change that opinion.

  “You did what?” Steve asked.

  The sound of his voice sent the flutter in her stomach shooting all the way to her toes and fingertips.

  The table shifted as he sat down across from her, and she couldn’t wait until he settled before diving into her story, how she’d sneaked out her window and ended up battling ghouls. Since she wanted to leave Zach out of the conversation, she took a few liberties with how the fight had ended.